Blood pressure study targets ethnic groups (2/26/97)

Are "normal" blood pressure values for African American
children the same as those values for Hispanic or Anglo
children?

Shirley Menard, PhD, RN, associate professor at The
University of Texas Health Science Center School of Nursing,
and her research team have begun a two-year study funded by
the Office of Maternal Child Health (Department of Health and
Human Services) to find answers to this question. "Current
guides are not very accurate," explains Dr. Menard,
principal investigator. "'Normal' blood pressure values may
be different for children and adolescents of various ethnic
groups." Heretofore, values have been established without
considerations of ethnicity and/or culture and were based
mostly on normal values for Anglo children.

While Dr. Menard's study will focus primarily on African
Americans, Hispanics and Anglos will be included. Students
enrolled in the San Antonio Independent School District
(SAISD), ages 5 to 18, are invited to participate. Comprised
of nurses and clerical assistants, Dr. Menard's research team
will travel to various schools in SAISD and compile data from
a minimum of 100 students per grade (kindergarten through 12)
per sex. Student participants will have their blood
pressures, weights, heights and skin folds measured and
recorded. The blood pressures will be taken with both an
oscillometric device and with a blood pressure cuff and
stethoscope.

"We're really establishing norms with the oscillometric
device," said Dr. Menard. "The machine is more accurate
than the cuff and stethoscope. There is no widespread
knowledge nor normal values for blood pressures taken with
the machine."

The researchers also will gather data about the participants'
diets. Students will be asked to recall what foods and
beverages they consumed the day prior to their participation
in the study. The information is entered into a computer;
special software then gives the researchers specifics on the
amounts of fat, potassium, sodium etc. in the students'
diets.

The popularity of fast foods coupled with sedentary life-
styles has contributed to increasing numbers of obese
children and adolescents, Dr. Menard said. This dietary
information will assist the researchers in determining
correlations between obesity and diet and blood pressure
values, she adds.

This is the second child/adolescent blood pressure study in
which Dr. Menard has participated. "In 1992-1995, we studied
primarily the Hispanic and Anglo populations. Dr. Myung Park
(professor of pediatrics at the Health Science Center) was
principal investigator," she stated. She hopes to do a third
study which would focus on Native American and Asian
children.

"We have paid so much attention for so many years to adults
with high blood pressure, but not enough attention to the
children. Some of the reason for that was not having a
device to take their blood pressures. But, now that we do
have one, we still don't pay enough attention," Dr. Menard
said.

During the 1992-1995 study, the research team identified an
elementary school student with high blood pressure. "In that
case, our study lead to life-saving heart surgery," Dr.
Menard said. "When we find kids with hypertension, we refer
them to the school nurse or their family doctor," she added.

"We need to pick up kids tending toward hypertension," Dr.
Menard stressed. "We need to detect it early, so we won't be
treating all the other diseases that can result."